Monday, March 25, 2013

a few simple words...

that I copy/pasted from orangette...

often I wish the words here were my own.
particularly these.

(The only way I would probably not eat oats is if I found them in my coat pocket, tangled in lint.  Probably.)


that blog was (IS) the reason I started this blog.

thank you Molly; thank you readers--for inspiring and reading my simple words.

Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Go (away) Grey!

Here in the Okanagan of British Columbia, Canada, we pay what is referred to as the "sunshine tax." This has nothing and everything to do with our oft debated and much despised HST; a payment made simply because we live here in, as our car liscence plates state "Beautiful British Columbia" and therefore must chip in to the luxury of such fine-itude, an unlimitable amount of money (or 13% if you will) paid to reside in the apple and grape (by default: wine) producing valley. "Green Bucks" takes on a whole new meaning here in our environment supporting/loving/taking-advantage-of habitat; we pay a bit to live in the green-ness. But right now, there is only grey-ness...and i would like a bit of a break.

Between the two colors, grey doesnt have alot on green. "Anne of Grey Gables" sounds more like a depressed young lady's autobiography than the attractive coming of age story taking place on the opposite end of our counry from BBC (which, by the way, is still under FEET, not inches, of GREY snow). Would it be such a Canadian legacy if not for the implication that Anne grew up somewhere very green indeed? About as likely as the "Jolly Grey Giant" would have been successful at selling frozen vegetables. Mmmm: grey peas and beans even before they turn to mush when you cook them. There is a reason that St. Patricks day is decked to the nines in green: would you drink grey beer and feel lucky about it? About as likely as feeling lucky (or jolly) to eat a frozen grey vegetable. About as lucky (or jolly) as i feel to be in not-so-beautiful British Columbia right now.


It is grey here. Grey Grey Grey. Unless you are skiing on Big White, in which case, it is white. Which is a close relative of grey, and not of green. But there is sunshine, which makes the grey seem almost white. I dont know, actually, as i am not up Big White, but at a much lower altitude here in downtown Kelowna, which is, as i mentioned, grey. Which, as i mentioned, is not green. Oh how i need some green.


so as i do when i "need" some europe/asia/carribean/mom, i find it via dinner. Eat green has taken on a whole new meaning at my stove. Last nights dinner was entirely monochromatic, and not entirely local...Sure there has been alot of vegetables from my own frozen stores, no gimmicky giants involved. Brocolli, fava beans, peas, rapini, cubes of pesto (not on their own...though i am not above that) and the aptly named green beans. From the farmers market, corn salad, and most recently, sprouting green lentils (thank you Curtis!). But I am so desperate for green that i bought kale at the grocery store yesterday, two dollars for about five leaves. Kale will probably be sprouting here in less than 6 weeks, but i cannot wait. So will other salad greens, all of which i also splurged on yesterday. Even parsely! i bought parsely that hardly even tastes of parsely having travelled so far, but it is so green! You have to really know me to know that this is the sort of thing i work all summer to avoid, preserving my garden to get me through the winter months. But i have caved. And i will likely cave again, because the green is so good. So not "rooty" or frozen, or pickled--i eat alot of green olives. Come April, i will eat alot of green asparagus--this will probably be better for me. Come april i will replace the store-boughts with market-boughts and feel a bit better about my only-green dinner. Come april there will be more green than grey. Come on april. Come on spring. Go Green.




For my sisters sake, i should note that Greys Anatomy is an enjoyable bit of grey (except when it makes me cry despite not having any clue what the heck is going on); and for pop cult fiction lovers, Fifty Shades of Green doesnt have quite the sexy appeal that the actual series offers...